No doubt the users of this message board have heard and seen the “new” Columbia OutDry rain jackets that claim to have solved the problem of durable water repellency wearing off of waterproof breathable fabrics. I am very curious to see how this material would change things for drysuit owners. All of us, I think, complain about how the DWR wears off of our expensive drysuits and even when reapplied, is never quite as good as it was from the factory.
Any thoughts on this? Anyone else want to see an equivalent product from a major drysuit manufacturer? Seem like an opportunity for one company to try to get ahead of the rest.
I wasn’t aware of the product, so gave in to my curiosity and stopped by a local shop that sells Columbia. It had the men’s OutDry jackets, but none for women so I didn’t try one on. Examining the jackets, they all crackled except for one black version. The outer layer on that one didn’t have a sheen like the others and wasn’t noisy. Inside layer was mesh on each one I checked out.